Crews set to break ground on tower at former Market Square Arena site

It’s been a parking lot for more than a decade, but now, crews are breaking-ground on a 28-story, $121 million mixed-use tower. There will 292 apartments, an additional 2,000 square feet of retail space, a parking garage and a Whole Foods Market Store.

Several attempts to redevelop the area didn’t work out in the past. Back in March though, City-County Council members voted to give the developer, Flaherity and Collins, up to $23 million in incentives to make the project happen.

The new tower is another example of the development happening downtown.

“There has been a development boom happening in downtown Indianapolis and the momentum is not letting up,” said Catherine Esselman, real estate development director for Downtown Indy.

“We hear every day about new projects, so it’s really exciting to see this project that’s been in the works for quite some time getting underway,” Esselman said.

Downtown Indy employees say more than 3,100 apartment units have been added downtown in the last five years, representing an 87% increase.

“We face competition to get residents, to get smart people that want to live here, that want to bring their families here, want to hold conventions here, so from all different sectors we see a lot of demand. So we’re trying to keep up with some good supply,” Esselman said.

“We’re anticipating 30,000 residents calling downtown Indianapolis their home by the end of the decade,” Esselman said.

An official ceremony will be held on Wednesday at 9:00 a.m. at the corner of Market and Alabama Streets in downtown Indianapolis.